I discovered Melanie Karsak on Instagram and over time, as she’s ran different promotions, I’ve acquired a few of her releases for free. One of those was the novella The Glass Mermaid, the first part in The Chancellor Fairy Tales series. I finally got around to reading it and enjoyed it, for the most part. This review will have spoilers.

Synopsis:

I’m the last mermaid.

On the shore of Lake Erie, I spend my final days hunting beach glass, making jewelry, and waiting for my mermaid glamour to leave me. Then it will be over. I resigned myself to the fact that there’s nothing more for me. Until I saw Cooper.

He comes to the beach every day to paint the sunrise and sunset. Nothing in this vast world has sparked my attention as much as him. I have no business falling in love with a human. Not now. And Cooper seems to have secrets of his own. I should leave him alone, but the curious mermaid in me can’t let that shiny bauble go.

More than anything, I want to be part of his world…before it’s too late.

Journey to the quaint small town of Chancellor where fairy tales live, dreams come true, and happily-ever-after always reigns supreme. From mermaids to witches to faeries, the residents of Chancellor are far from ordinary. Enjoy these re-envisioned fairy tales loosely based on The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, and classic witch tales.

My Thoughts:

• Rating- ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I’m a sucker for fantasy and fairytale retellings so I knew would enjoy that aspect of this novella. However, I also really liked how this story had a typical chick lit setting but with a twist because the main character is a mermaid. Chancellor is a cute little town where there’s always a festival, dance, etc. With the addition of a handsome new man next door, all that’s keeping this story from being a rom-com is neither main character has a dog.

Well, lack of a dog and the fact both Kate, the last mermaid, and Cooper have tragic secrets. All the mermaids and everyone Kate loved died around 300 years ago and Cooper is dying from cancer. Unfortunately, the cancer thing is what kept this from being a five star read.

I don’t mind realism in my books, but cancer gives me anxiety and I prefer for it not to be a big part of the media I consume. Cooper’s battle with the disease is a main feature and it’s very depressing. I also started the second novella in this series, The Cupcake Witch, and if I remember correctly, both main character’s mothers died of cancer. That’s just a whole lot of a horrible disease in one series. I did DNF The Cupcake Witch for now. 

Back to The Glass Mermaid, this novella does have a happy ending and I loved the way everything was wrapped up. Overall, this was a good read and I look forward to reading more by Melanie Karsak. 

Final Thoughts:

Have you read anything by this author? She’s written a TON of books so if you have, let me know what I should read next. Thanks for reading and have a great day!